Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan's October 2015 Public Meeting

Sorry, I'm a little late posting about this. In late October, I attended the Regional Transit Authority of Southeast Michigan's "BEST: Regional Master Transit Plan Public Meeting" at The Detroit Zoo. I was curious about the proposed bus rapid transit (BRT) system along the Woodward Avenue corridor from Downtown Detroit to Downtown Pontiac servicing 26 stations in Wayne and Oakland Counties. As I've mentioned in previous posts I hope that Troy City staff and elected officials are working to ensure that the Troy Transit Center is utilized by the proposed Woodward Avenue BRT.

Click here to view/print some of the documents that were available at this meeting.

I've posted some photos below that I took at the 10/22/15 event...

Attending @RTAmichigan Regional Master Plan Public Meeting. #HeyRTA (@ The @DetroitZoo) https://t.co/sF9Di3jqQN pic.twitter.com/P1XIHxGvk7

— Dave Lambert (@DLambertsOnline) October 22, 2015

Troy Election "Tweets" for November 2015

This past Tuesday (11/3/15) wasn't just another election day. It was our son Alex's first time actually voting. Unfortunately, he would not let me take his photo as a commemoration of that important civic event in his life.

I guess I'll just have to "share" some local, election-related tweets with you instead...

Voting with @mewl712 @LamberAlex #TroyMI (@ Troy MI Precinct 10 in Troy, MI) https://t.co/Mih0coIluF pic.twitter.com/pupYXKV5Ha

— Dave Lambert (@DLambertsOnline) November 4, 2015

Thank you, Troy! School District Millage passes with 73%. Strong schools= Strong Communities.

— TroySchools (@troyschools) November 4, 2015

#TroyMI @troylib millage passes. 70% in favor of the renewal! #OaklandCounty #elections

— Dave Lambert (@DLambertsOnline) November 4, 2015

Congratulations to @CityTroyMI Council candidates @davefortroy @ednaforcouncil @EBaker4Michigan and Jim Campbell #OaklandCounty #Elections

— Dave Lambert (@DLambertsOnline) November 4, 2015

@DLambertsOnline @CityTroyMI @davefortroy @ednaforcouncil Thank you @DLambertsOnline!! It is an absolute honor!

— Ethan D. Baker (@EBaker4Michigan) November 4, 2015

Last but not least, congratulations to @CityTroyMI Mayor Slater on his re-election. #TroyMI #elections #OaklandCounty

— Dave Lambert (@DLambertsOnline) November 4, 2015

Congrats Council Members! Looking forward to working together to keep Troy great. @EBaker4Michigan @ednaforcouncil https://t.co/8lvU7TNxyX

— TroyMI_Police (@TroyMI_Police) November 4, 2015

@troylib funded for another five years, @troyschools receives millage renewal, @CityTroyMI keeps great mayor, elects great new council woman

— Siouxnami (@Siouxnamii) November 4, 2015

@DLambertsOnline @CityTroyMI @davefortroy @EBaker4Michigan thanks, Dave! I'm looking forward to serving the residents of Troy!

— Elect Edna Abrahim (@ednaforcouncil) November 6, 2015

City of Troy 2015 Ballot Proposals

Most City of Troy voters will have 2 proposals to consider on next week's ballot. I'll be voting "Yes" on both of them. Neither proposal raises taxes. They are just renewals.

1. For those of us who reside in the Troy School District, we will be voting on a proposal to renew our non-homestead and hold harmless millage. The Troy School District has posted some excellent online information on this millage renewal proposal. Click here to view that web page.


2. The other is a proposal to renew the millage for the purpose of operating and maintaining the library. Troy Residents Unified for a Strong Troy (TRUST) has issued an informative news release on the Library renewal millage...

What voting YES on the Library Millage Ballot Question does:

• Provides library funding until 2021
• Maintains current six-day operations
• Prevents the operating costs of the library from being taken out of the City’s general budget, which in turn protects other city services from possible reduction
• Protects the City’s AAA bond rating

How the 0.7 mill rate compares to local cities:

• Third lowest millage in Oakland County
• Lowest of all surrounding cities of similar size

Who supports a YES vote:

• All sitting City Council members and Mayor Slater support renewal
• Every candidate running for open City Council seats supports renewal
• Unanimous support from the Financial Ideas Team, comprised of residents from a varied spectrum of ages, backgrounds, and political leanings

Troy Public Library by the numbers:

• Programming attendance up 60% since 2013
• 476,000 patrons visited the library in 2014
• 88% of all materials are checked out to Troy residents
• 64% of all Troy residents have a library card

To estimate your household’s tax with this renewal, click here